A Bloody Riddle: The Rewrite
by CruciareMors
Summary: MURDER MYSTERY. Against all odds, a corpse is found in the Hogwarts Express. Harry is given the task of solving this mysterious murder before the journey ends. HBP compliant, DIFFERENT ENDING.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **As I'm not a blonde, rich, talented Englishwoman, I'm afraid this isn't mine. Harry Potter™ and all related characters belong to JK Rowling. I just borrowed them for a bit of fun.

**A BLOODY RIDDLE: THE REWRITE**

**Chapter One**

The shiny and hot summer morning contrasted heavily with the mood of each and every pupil of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, for this was a sad day. A very sad day. The day on which the greatest hope of Light had been buried forever.

Trapped in a crowded, yet tiny railway station, Harry Potter was no exception to the rule. He was in a very foul mood indeed, a mix of the sadness and the despair that overwhelmed them all, and he was positively suffocating under the merciless sun. He wondered if things could get much worse from there.

He imagined he wouldn't be very comfortable inside the train, anyway. Due to the large number of deserters, the student population had been reduced to only one hundred and fifteen students, and the number of carriages had been shortened to five, despites the numerous complaints.

The security measures weren't helping anyone either. Standing at every door into the Hogwarts Express was an Auror, holding a list of the people who should go into each carriage. Why they bothered, no one knew. Perhaps it was because they feared someone would go missing, or perhaps it was because they wanted to know exactly who had boarded the train, to make sure there would be no foul surprises whilst the journey to London occurred, for the Minister of Magic couldn't allow his precious Aurors to ride with the students for fear of leaving himself vulnerable to an attack.

Finally, among the crowd of students, Harry heard his name being called:

"Potter, Harry James, section four!" shouted the all too familiar voice of Kingsley Shacklebolt. Harry immediately proceeded to push past the mass of heads and shoulders around him in order to reach the carriage in question as soon as humanly possible. His task was, of course, made heavily difficult by the simple fact that there were too many people in the station for everyone to keep their toes untouched and, therefore, a lot of complaints ensued.

Once inside, he started looking for a friendly compartment, hoping that he would be able to find at least one of his friends. Honestly, who had come up with the brilliant idea of directing the students to random compartments? Considering his luck, he would probably end up sharing a compartment with some groupies or something. Or worse, a bunch of pure-blood supremacists – he did not feel like having a fight at the moment.

Sighing, he finally found an empty compartment and started praying his ride companions would not be as bad as he dreaded. However, his hopes were shattered when none other than Colin Creevey entered the compartment, his cheeks flushing and his eyes lighting up with undisguised happiness at the sight of his hero.

"Oh, hullo, Harry!" he exclaimed. "Here, I was hoping you'd let me get a signed photo, just you this time…" he trailed off at the icy glare Harry shot him and fell silent at once, taking a seat at the opposite end of the compartment and adopting a solemn posture fitting for a funeral.

Harry's luck was not to be improved with the passing time. Joining Colin came Ernie Macmillan and his inseparable rumoured-to-be-girlfriend Susan Bones, a third-year girl he learned was called Orla Quirke and, surprise of the surprises, Vincent Crabbe, in a murderous mood that didn't make him any more appealing to talk to than usual.

The witch who usually sold sweets was now making sure that everyone was settled and no compartment held more than six passengers before the inter-carriage doors were closed and the train sped off for London.

Harry looked out of the window and sighed. This was going to be a tough journey.

XoX

Ginny Weasley couldn't believe her _luck_. The fates had to be having a seriously loud laugh about her at that moment.

The last week of the school year had been like _hell_ for the youngest Weasley. First Bill's injury, then Dumbledore's death, and now she and Harry had parted too. The only thing that could possibly make her week worse was being trapped in a train compartment with Romilda Vane, Michael Corner and Blaise Zabini at once. Which she incidentally was.

The train hadn't even started moving yet and she was already being nagged to death by the stupid Vane groupie, who was extremely satisfied to hear about Harry being "single" again and seemed to take a sort of sadistic pleasure out of seeing Ginny sad.

"Now, I never thought it would last, to be honest about it… Harry is just not the kind of guy to be trapped with an uninteresting, poor girl for long. He needs to be challenged," she was saying, an eager expression on her face. Ginny's blood boiled, but she didn't do anything, pretending she hadn't heard what the younger girl had said. Unfortunately, while Vane was disgruntled that her commentary had seemingly had no effect on Ginny, her mood lightened up considerably when Michael Corner rushed to come to what he supposed was his former girlfriend's help.

"Well, and who do you suggest he should be with, Romilda? _You_?" he asked in an impertinent tone.

Romilda smirked. "I'm not arrogant, Mike; one can't choose who one falls for… but if they have someone to open their eyes… well, let's just say Harry doesn't know what he's missing – _yet_," she stressed the last word to give emphasis to her hope that Harry would "open his eyes" soon enough. Ginny couldn't keep from rolling her eyes in exasperation. Zabini smiled broadly at the perspective of a good fight. Meanwhile, Corner struck back.

"And you'll be the one to do it, Vane? Come on, I thought you were more intelligent than that," he spat. "How would you approach him in the first place?"

Romilda's smile widened as she got up and opened her trunk, revealing a shiny silver cloak Ginny recognised at once. Harry's Invisibility Cloak. "I think giving him his cloak back is a good excuse, don't you?"

"You slutty thief!" Ginny roared, standing. "Give me that!"

Still smirking, Zabini stood up himself. "Are you so desperate to find an excuse to see Potty that you need a stupid cloak, Weasel? Perhaps you think giving it to him will make him want you back?" The disdainful words had barely escaped his mouth and he was on the ground, screaming as his bogeys started attacking his face. Ginny then turned to Vane. Forgetting her wand, she punched her in the face, throwing the other girl off balance. Romilda stared.

"You great-!" she screamed and threw herself at Ginny, sending them both towards the floor. The cloak lay forgotten on the floor. Meanwhile, the other two occupants of the compartment, Natalie McDougal and Mariah Montgomery, were speechless.

XoX

"Mr Potter, please… _Mr Potter_!"

Harry awoke from his slumber to see the plump witch usually in charge of the sweets trolley leaning over him, calling him out of his deep sleep. Barely suppressing a yawn, he took a moment to look at her more intently. She looked fatter than usual, but what worried him was her expression of… was it _fear_?

"What happened?" he demanded, straightening up and steeling himself for whatever she had come here to tell him. The witch, however, looked at him nervously.

"Mr Potter, would you mind coming with me outside?"

Harry eyed her with grim curiosity. Her expression was not a good sign. What did she want from him? His compartment mates' expressions didn't bode well either.

Nevertheless, he stood up and followed her out of the door and into the corridor. Outside, she motioned him to the toilets, at the front of the carriage. Harry just stared at her, speechless. _What the hell do you want me in the toilet for, woman?_

Seeming to realise his thoughts, the witch looked startled, a small blush appearing on her face, and settled for the corridor instead, casting a Silencing charm around them.

"Mr Potter, I need to ask you a favour." Harry eyed her suspiciously and waited for the rest to come. "A passenger of this train has been found…" she cringed visibly, "…dead… in one of the compartments."

Harry's eyes wanted to bulge out of their sockets, causing him to feel no small amount of pain.

"The thing is… I don't know why he was here in the first place," the witch added hesitantly.

Harry recovered his voice. "Who was it? Who was the student?"

She frowned at him. "That's the thing… I'm not so sure it was a student… Come with me, please." And, taking out her wand and muttering something unrecognizable as she tapped the door, she opened it and motioned for him to follow her into the third carriage.

XoX

Harry was greeted by the sight of complete pandemonium. Romilda Vane was teasing a little crying girl, trying to push her into one of the front compartments against her will and that of what had to be Mariah Montgomery, with her dark blue hair, who was presently trying to both prevent Romilda from doing whatever she was attempting to do and keep Michael Corner and Gregory Goyle from fighting each other. Against the wall, Cho Chang and Marietta Edgecombe were whispering urgently, while trying to avoid looking into the furthest compartment on the left side. Harry could have sworn Cho had made a loud gurgling noise when their eyes met, but he soon dismissed the thought. His eyes came, then, to rest on Ginny, who seemed to be putting all her efforts into keeping her face straight and not vomiting – whether it was from the sick stuff Pansy was yelling at her or from something she might have seen, he could not tell.

Meanwhile, the witch had stopped to take in the havoc that had begun when she had left the place, not more than ten minutes ago. Brandishing her wand once more, she sent sparks of several colours into the air and made a loud noise that distracted everyone from their activities. Most people looked around for the source, realising Harry was there for the first time, but before they could even speak the witch ordered them to their compartments and darkened the windows in order to prevent curious students from looking at what was bound to be an unpleasant sight. She then beckoned Harry to follow her and entered the furthest compartment.

Harry's first reaction was shock. He certainly hadn't been expecting to see blood at all, mind you the large quantity of it present in that compartment. The figure lay on the floor by the window, and the bloody distorted shape on the wall made it clear the victim had collapsed against it before falling to the floor. But that wasn't all.

With all the courage he could muster, Harry reached for the corpse (the witch hissed and turned her back on him with an affected yelp) and turned it over. What he saw almost made him throw up. There were slashes all over it, to the point where gender wasn't recognizable, forget the identity of the victim. There was something curious, though. A portion of its bare left arm remained untouched. Leaning in and trying his best to hold his composure at both the sight in front of his eyes and the reek of blood, Harry gasped. There was a form there, a form Harry was bound to recognise at once: the Dark Mark.

Harry looked up at the witch. "So that's why you said you weren't certain it was a student…" he muttered, standing up. He frowned. "Why was there only one person in this compartment? I thought there had to be six," he mused, looking at her. He was liking this less and less with every passing moment and he could sense her discomfort when he looked at her.

"I don't know…" she said with an unconvincing frown of perplexity at the bloodstained wall. "In fact−" She looked at him. "I don't remember checking this compartment at all."

Harry sighed. "How did you know this was a Death Eater?" he demanded. "And why in Merlin's name did you call _me_? I can't do anything about it! The guy's dead!"

The witch cringed at the verbal attack. "Mr Potter, I thought it would be best to call you just because you're the person in here that has dealt most with Death Eaters… In fact, I was hoping you could try and find out who did this… _the monster_ who did this…" And she looked at him with something akin to fierceness, which surprised Harry more even than the fact that a Death Eater had been found dead in a train full of students. Could it possibly be that this woman knew the murdered Death Eater?

"Do you know this person?" he asked brutally. She winced.

"No… no, I don't! I mean, even if I did, how would I be able to recognise him in this… state…?" Her voice faltered and Harry shot her a glare. _Oh, I wish I was a Legilimens now…_

Harry eyed her suspiciously. "You sure?"

"Yes, sir, yes. I don't know who he is, I swear… Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go back…" She indicated the door. With an irritated wave, Harry dismissed her. Turning to take the sight in front of him, he reconsidered. A trip to the toilet didn't seem such a bad idea, after all.

**A/N:** This is a rewrite of my first fanfic to be published. It now reads better than the older version thanks to Raisinous Fiendling, who was generous enough to accept beta-ing this story. Thank you, RF! You may recognise this plot, but I can't guarantee the ending will be the same as the older one. Until the next chapter is posted, please don't forget to **review**, guys. It's very important to me to get some feedback on my stories. Hope you liked this chapter!


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: **As I'm not a blonde, rich, talented Englishwoman, I'm afraid this isn't mine. Harry Potter ™ and all related characters belong to JK Rowling. I just borrowed them for a bit of fun.

**A BLOODY RIDDLE: THE REWRITE**

**Chapter ****Two**

Ginny was feeling very indisposed indeed. She had been pushed into the left front compartment by that stupid Vane brat, only to find a corpse lying there and a sickening amount of blood spread around the place. She wondered how she had made it without throwing up for so long.

With a sigh, she opened the toilet door just in time to have a very sick-looking Harry push past her and empty his stomach just like she had done. She watched him with the tiniest smile on her lips. The great Harry Potter, acting like a normal person for everyone to see. How many journalists would kill to witness a scene like this. A disgusting scene, but at least she now had someone to draw strength from, if only for a short while.

Harry finally flushed the toilet and turned around to find Ginny smiling and watching him dreamily. "One would think this kind of scene would be disgusting, but if you manage to smile, perhaps we should meet in a stinky toilet more often," he teased her. She looked around, startled, and then blushed furiously.

"Sorry…" she said weakly, averting her eyes to the floor. _Bloody hell, Ginny, why are you behaving like a silly twelve-year-old?_ Judging by the hint of a playful shine in his eyes, Harry was thinking just the same. The rest of his face betrayed his worry, though. "What is it, Harry? Is it the murder?" she demanded.

"What else?" he replied. "I've been put in charge of the situation by that witch, you know? And I haven't got a clue who did it – my best guess is that it was _her_, but there's nothing to prove it, is there?" He rubbed his temples and sighed. "Did you see anything useful?"

Ginny shook her head. "Nope, sorry. I was a bit… busy," she answered, her cheeks colouring brilliantly. Harry narrowed his eyes.

"Busy…?" he asked, seemingly dreading the answer.

Ginny, suddenly understanding how it must have sounded to Harry, hurried to clarify the meaning. "Oh, not _that_! I'm not seeing anyone, Harry!" She eyed him sadly, drawing a deep breath. "I got into a fight with Romilda Vane," she explained.

For a moment, Ginny saw Harry make an expression of relief, before hastily recomposing himself and eyeing her curiously. "Fight? With Romilda? Why?"

Ginny blushed even more. "Well, she heard we'd, you know, split, and she decided she wanted to have a go at you now…" Ginny was now staring at the floor, looking miserable. Harry just gaped.

"Well, that only shows she's even more stubborn than I ever thought she would be!" Harry spluttered. "Not that it matters – she's not getting me, not now, not ever! I thought you, of all people, would know that, Ginny!"

Ginny stared at him, wide-eyed with shock at the anger behind Harry's words. He sounded as though he didn't feel flattered at all by Vane's interest! She had thought Harry would be glad another girl had become interested in him – it might help him to get over her. If he was indeed in any need to get over her, she thought angrily, for in the end hadn't he been the one to break up with her? Would he even have been able to do that had he felt strongly for her? Ginny was beginning to doubt Harry had ever been in love with her the way he had said he was. Who knows, he might even fall in love with the new girl. Vane might not be on the cover of a witch beauty magazine, but she was certainly easy on the eye, if you went by appearance alone and forgot how much of a spoilt brat she was. But then came those reactions she could only associate with jealousy whenever Harry saw Ginny with other guys. Ginny couldn't interpret his actions. They made no sense to her. Well, not much, at least. In truth, what happened in Harry's life was his call, and she knew she needed to distance herself from him in the romantic sense or she would end up hurt by all the angst he tended to put himself through. She knew, in her mind at least, that her ex-boyfriend was free to do what he wanted. But in a way, she was grateful Harry didn't seem to be attracted by Romilda Vane, as she knew that, for all her beauty charms, Vane would only end up damaging Harry more. She shook the thought from her head. This should not be why they were holding that conversation in the first place.

"So, what are you planning to do now?" she demanded.

XoX

When Harry had dashed into the toilet to try to placate his nausea, he couldn't possibly imagine he would find his ex-girlfriend there, facing that exact same problem. He found himself amused and a little relieved that Ginny seemed to react so well to his presence since their parting was still so fresh, but he certainly wasn't complaining about that. That was probably why, in spite of the circumstances, he found himself flirting with her. Ginny, however, had always given the impression of being able to see right through him, voicing his worries spot on. The murder. Too bad she hadn't seen anything of use – at least he would have a reliable witness to count on. And then, when Romilda Vane had been mentioned, Ginny's demeanour changed perceptibly. First she had acted as though the thought of him being with Romilda Vane was perfectly normal and did not revolt her in the slightest, something he did not believe even for a second. And then, just as he was trying to make sense of what was going on in her head, she had gone and reminded him that they had a murder to solve. To tell the truth, he had no idea how to proceed, so the most logical solution was to ask for help. "Any suggestions?"

Ginny frowned for a moment. "Well, I suppose you should begin by eliminating those who are not suspect. I, for one, can't see one of the youngest pupils doing something like this – can you?"

"I don't think so, no," Harry answered. "But the fact remains that those pupils might not be kids at all – for all that we know, one of them could have been replaced by an adult at some point!" He grunted. "How are we supposed to sort this out, Ginny?" he asked, feeling a bit disconcerted. Why would someone provided with rational thought put _him_ in charge of a bloody investigation?

Ginny's frown was even more accentuated. "Now, two things, Harry…" He eyed her in surprise. "First, I'm glad you said 'we' are supposed to sort this out, but don't forget I could be the murderer for all that you know…"

"A bit improbable, Miss Detective!" Harry smirked.

"Still, it's _possible_, Harry. And second, there's no way a student could be under Polyjuice potion or something. You know, that's what that yellow thing they almost shoved down our throats as we left school was for – it would detect Polyjuice in an instant, make a reaction or something, I heard Dad talking about it last Christmas - apparently, that was a recent invention. And the list of names the Aurors had was the same that McGonagall composed when we took it – only the people whom she _saw_ take the potion were added. So no one was let into the train without having taken that first. The Order told you, didn't they?" At Harry's nod, she continued. "Also, the whole train is equipped against Metamorphmagi and Animagi, I believe Tonks set the alarm off to test it…"

"And the spell detectors would have detected any kind of glamour charm or something else made to change your appearance," Harry concluded. "Good. At least we don't have to worry about _that_."

However, as he said this, a sudden idea crossed his mind. "But then…" He looked at Ginny, baffled. "But then _how did the Death Eater get in the train_?"

Ginny stared at Harry with wide eyes, her mouth opening and closing as if she, too, could not find an explanation for that strange fact.

"Oh, can't we get Hermione or something, for Heaven's sake?! She'd have this sorted out in a moment, brains like hers!" Harry exploded. Ginny's eyebrow shot up.

"Well, that's just a matter of asking that plump witch out there, isn't it? You wait there," she said, gesturing him to the toilet seat. "I'll be back in a jiffy…"

Indeed, it seemed like barely a second had passed before she was back in the toilet, closing the door behind her and leaving them to share an uncomfortably small space for two people once again.

"Sorry. The witch says she doesn't want people back and forth in the train. She herself is staying in this carriage, so that she doesn't attract the attention of the other students - distressed as she is, I think that would be a fairly possible thing to happen. She's in the next toilet." Ginny sighed. "So, what do we do now?"

Harry thought about it for a moment. "Well… I guess we should make an inventory of the suspects, what say you?"

Ginny nodded. "Well, this time, I do appreciate the fact that I had to argue a bit before I could find a seat in this carriage. I was one of the last ones to get in, so… let's see…" She paused, trying to clear her thoughts. "In my compartment there was Vane, me, Zabini, Michael Corner, Claire… no, Mariah…"

XoX

Had someone told Ginny such a task would take up so little time, she would not dare believe them, but the truth was that ten minutes, some questions and some conjured paper, ink and quills later, they stood with a list in front of them:

_**Front, left**__: MURDERED DEATH EATER._

_**Front, right**__: Romilda Vane, Ginny Weasley, Natalie McDougal, Mariah Montgomery, Blaise Zabini, Michael Corner._

_**Back, left**__: Justin Finch-Fletchley, Anne Clearwater, Morag MacDougal, Cormac McLaggen, Liam Bateson, Leanne Bateson._

_**Back, right**__: Gregory Goyle, Pansy Parkinson, Dean Thomas, Lavender Brown, Cho Chang, Marietta Edgecombe._

"Who would have thought? So many different people thrown together into a situation like this!" Harry mused. "So, my guess is that we can eliminate… let's see…" He scanned the list. "Natalie, Anne, Liam, and… that's it? Everyone else is a suspect?" he asked with a sigh.

Ginny scanned the list herself. "I'm afraid so. Those are the only ones who don't know powerful spells yet, they can cause no real harm to anyone." She looked up at him. "How does it feel to be talking to a suspect?"

Harry frowned. "Now, you know I didn't want to include you as a suspect, Ginny. But you said it yourself, you _could_ be the murderer!" He winked at her before looking at the paper again. "Maybe I should owl someone… Tonks will certainly want to hear about this, I bet. I'll just tell her I'm trying to help in here, and send her a copy of this." He waved the paper. "What do you think?"

"Excellent idea. I don't think there'll be time for her to answer, though, but she will tell the other Aurors, I bet, so that they can carry on with the investigation." Ginny nodded and helped him jot down something to send Tonks.

Some minutes later, a grudgingly-brought-by-the-witch Hedwig was on her way to London with a message for Tonks. Harry turned to face Ginny. "Do you think we should inspect the compartment again? We need to find something to help us, after all." She nodded. Taking a deep, calming breath, Harry walked out of the toilet, and, as if steeling himself for what he was going to see, closed his eyes for a brief moment and opened the door to the left front compartment, Ginny on his heels.

The scenario remained untouched, the walls, the bloody mass on the floor, everything. Visibly trying to control himself and not retch, Harry crouched down next to the body, probably trying to spot something that might help them. Ginny herself was much more preoccupied with how little was left of her lunch for her to throw up, so she was not very attentive to what Harry might or not be doing. It wasn't long until she lost the battle to stay quiet and let him work.

"I can't take this anymore!" she exclaimed. "I'm casting a refreshing spell on the air, Harry!"

"No, don't do that!" Harry yelped. "We don't know how to protect the scene, for all we know the magic might contaminate it. We have to leave things exactly as we found them. Go outside if you start feeling too queasy. Sorry." He looked at her apologetically for a moment before turning his attention back to the corpse.

Scanning the body, Harry suddenly gasped and pointed out a form that did not seem to belong with it. He immediately took a handkerchief out of his pocket and proceeded to pick it up from the floor cautiously.

"Gin, I found the guy's wand," he whispered, looking over. Ginny's eyes widened with surprise, though she herself could not tell if it was from the fact that he had picked up the wand despite all that blood or the fact that it had been found. Judging from the increase in her ill-disposition, she would bet on the first one.

Finally, after almost a minute, the girl thought it safe to open her mouth. "What are you planning to do with that? Ollivander hasn't been seen in months, so there's no way you can contact him. What use can it be then?" she mused, more to herself than to Harry.

Harry shrugged. "Just thought we might try and see the last spells this bloke did; it might help us find out how he got into the train, I reckon."

Ginny looked at him for a moment before making her reply. "Well, what are you waiting for, then? Just do it!"

Harry walked away from the corpse, taking his wand out of his back pocket as he did so. Closing the compartment door after they had exited it and standing next to a now eager Ginny, he put the two wand tips together.

"Priori Incantatem!"

Ginny looked at him. "So you're going to check all his spells…?" He nodded and then shushed her as the ghosts of the victim's spells started coming out of the wand.

Five minutes later, both of them were back inside the compartment, the wand was back in the exact place where it had been found and Harry was staring at Ginny, seemingly lost in thought. Ginny, on the other hand, was extremely disgruntled. "Honestly, how's it possible that this guy managed to get into the train without using anything to give himself away?!" she practically barked, turning to face her partner. "Harry? HARRY!"

Harry jumped slightly and blinked at her. "Sorry, it's just that…" he fell silent again, obviously pondering a new alternative.

Ginny, however, was way too impatient to be left in the dark like that. "It's just _what_, Harry?"

Harry bit his lip. "Ginny… there is no spell in there he could have used to get in here, right?" She nodded, exasperated. "Then the only way he _could_ have entered the train was if someone let him in, yeah?"

Ginny's mouth hung open. "Do you mean this guy _bribed_ an Auror to let him in? Or worse, that Auror didn't need bribery _at all_?!" she spat out, shocked.

Harry looked thoughtful. "Well, I wasn't thinking about that. You see, I've just realised that the Aurors might have left a hole in the security. Look, I'll be right back, OK?" And, with that, he ran out of the compartment.

**A/N:** This chapter is now more RF's than it is mine. Thanks for all the help, RF! I'm sorry it took so long, but it was necessary. Please leave a comment with your thoughts, theories or criticism – I'll be glad to read everything except flames! Hope you liked this chapter! xD


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: **As I'm not a blonde, rich, talented Englishwoman, I'm afraid this isn't mine. Harry Potter ™ and all related characters belong to JK Rowling. I just borrowed them for a bit of fun.

**A BLOODY RIDDLE: THE REWRITE**

**Chapter ****Three**

She was more miserable than she had ever been in her whole life. How could she have let this happen? Who had done this to him?

A loud knock on the door shook her out of her thoughts and she wiped her eyes hastily. Whoever it was didn't need to know she had been crying. She opened the door hesitantly.

"May I have a word with you, madam?"

She sighed. "Of course, Mr. Potter. I'd say 'come in' but I guess we'll be short of space, won't we?"

The boy came in anyway, barely managing to close the door, as if he wanted to contradict her. He was now standing against it, barely avoiding touching her legs, since she had retreated into the cubicle and sat down on the toilet with the lid down.

The boy spoke then. "Well, it seems like that won't be a problem, Ms…?"

She smiled sadly. After all these years, someone had finally bothered to ask her name. How ironic. "It's Susan. Susan Austin."

The boy looked at her for a moment. "Would you mind waiting here for a moment, please?" She shook her head. "Good. I'll be right back."

Indeed, less than two minutes later, he was back, closing the door after him. "I guess we can talk safely now, Ms. Austin. Everyone's inside their own compartments and I'm fairly sure no one saw me. Would you mind giving me your wand now, please? Safety measures, you know."

She did so, handing it over hesitantly. "What do you want from me, Mr. Potter?" she demanded.

He seemed to hesitate. She was feeling very uneasy now. That boy was a lot smarter than she had initially given him credit for, which was good in a way, but if the murderer wasn't discovered… well, she could sense he would place the blame on her in the blink of an eye. "I just need information." He looked her in the eye. "Where did you board the train?"

The question caught her by surprise, but she answered it nonetheless. "In London. Mathias and I come from London every year to get the students home…"

Harry frowned. "May I assume Mathias is the machinist…?" he said, eyeing her oddly.

Susan nodded. Harry, however, was apparently far from done with her.

"So, when did you arrive in Hogsmeade, madam?" he asked.

It was her turn to frown. She had to be very cautious now. "Two nights ago. We usually stay at the Leaky Cauldron, you know, in London, one more day, but we wanted to pay our last respects to Professor Dumbledore and so stayed at the Hog's Head for a night instead," she said sadly.

This seemed to spark Harry's curiosity, judging from the way his eyes shone. "Then how long has that man been in the compartment, Ms Austin?"

XoX

Harry prayed she wouldn't realise he actually knew nothing and was acting upon a mere conjecture. He did have her wand, but there was no guarantee she wouldn't attack him all the same, and the space was pretty cramped. He would have to be attentive. Still, judging by the look on her face, he'd hit the target.

Susan looked at him, shocked. "Do you intend to say I murdered him and put him there? I didn't!" she whispered.

"Well, as a matter of fact, I didn't, but that's a possibility, you have to admit it. I hadn't thought of preserving the body with magic, but that's an interesting concept – and if he had been murdered before the train departed that would certainly have been needed. But I meant something slightly different, actually." He struggled not to shiver at the look on her face. "Why did you hide a Death Eater in there? Why did you keep students away from that particular compartment?"

Susan Austin cringed. "I did not…"

Harry put all his effort into keeping an emotionless façade, as if he hadn't heard her faint complaint. "Then how did you know it was a man? Because _you had seen him alive_! You always referred to the victim as 'him', but we both know it's impossible to recognise him in that state! Once and for all, Ms. Austin−" He was struggling to look at least intimidating now, and he was succeeding, judging from the look on her face. "What was this man doing on the Hogwarts Express?!"

Susan could not keep her tears any longer, and Harry knew then that she could act no more.

"You say you didn't kill him; what proof do I have of that?" Harry insisted with the crying woman, though he felt like beating himself into a pulp. He did not believe the witch could have killed that Death Eater, but he had to make sure. "You and the machinist were submitted to the same security measures as the students, I know that much. Was there anything else?"

Susan sent him a frightened glance. "Veritaserum. They wanted to confirm none of us meant harm to any of the students in the train, had done or would do something that could possibly endanger them. And we passed that test. The Aurors trusted us with the train. Why shouldn't they? Very few people are resistant to it, and our names sure aren't on that list!"

Harry bit his lower lip. That sounded as if she had evaded the question. "Yes, all right. But they would have searched the train anyway, so how did you get that man in here?"

Susan Austin's breath hitched. "Mr. Potter, I fail to see..."

"Would you just _answer_ the question, damn it?!"

It was like something had exploded inside Susan and she could not hold her words in anymore. "He wasn't here when they searched the train, he smuggled himself in when we were told to come in!" she exclaimed, her voice cracked with emotion. "He was with us on the platform the whole time, invisible." Her body sagged in what Harry assumed must be defeat, but her breathing was so laboured and erratic that the boy knew she was still holding back on the truth.

Harry snorted in disbelief. He didn't know what to believe anymore.

"So let me see if I got it... you helped a Death Eater into the train and still told the Aurors you meant no harm to the students?!"

"He would never harm the students! He was my _son_!" Susan cried out, allowing the tears to spill more violently than before with a sob.

Silence ensued. Harry let out a shaky breath. This promised to be a very long story.

XoX

"What?!"

Harry nodded. "Yeah! Sounds crazy, doesn't it? But it does make sense!"

Ginny had been listening to Harry's explanation for a quarter of an hour now and it was obvious to Harry that she still couldn't believe the situation could get more complicated than it already was. "So, let me get this straight. This man…" She pointed to the door of the compartment. "…is the witch's _son_?"

"Yep," Harry answered. "We'll have to check this story with someone in the Order, though."

"Why?" Ginny's tone betrayed a mix of impatience and curiosity.

"She claims he was a spy for the Order, a Death Eater that could give information on the attacks planned easily, because he was not a recent addition but was also not too close to Voldemort – he was allegedly on the outer part of the inner circle, so to speak. In fact, he played around with some of the inner circle's memories a bit, according to his mother. Knew information that only those strict few Death Eaters knew, and by manipulating their memories to his liking he managed to raise suspicion towards them, not him. Well, at least he should have. His current state doesn't speak much of his abilities as a spy, does it?"

Ginny sighed, putting her head in her hands. "I don't get it, Harry! What is a spy for the Order doing in here?" She shook her head. "It doesn't make sense!"

Harry's nose twitched in impatience. "I'm not finished yet, Ginny. Susan Austin says her son, Marius she said his name was, refused to kill a child a fortnight ago up in Glasgow and had to flee the Death Eaters after he lost the chance to either kill them or modify their memories. Apparently, he had had enough and wanted to seek refuge within the Order. That's the reason he boarded the train, to go unnoticed…"

"… but someone found out he was coming and killed him. This is getting more confusing by the moment. For example, how did his mother prevent any students from coming inside the compartment?" Ginny was obviously in denial over the exposed theory. Harry couldn't blame her, but he still thought it was worth acting on that new perspective.

"I also asked her about that. What she told me was that that compartment was the one where she travelled and kept her sweets. Apparently, she always chooses one right in the centre of the train. She first works her way from the front to the back of the train selling her sweets and then settles down in there for the rest of the journey unless she's called. It must have been during that first round that she found her son dead in the compartment she'd left him in." Harry shrugged.

Ginny cringed. "Look, why don't we levitate the body into a toilet? I feels bad, leaving someone just lying there, Death Eater or not!"

Harry shook his head vehemently. "That'd be destroying the crime scene – I wouldn't want to meet an Auror ever again if we did that!"

"All right, you've got a point," Ginny said with a grimace. "Okay…I think we should take one last look at the compartment." The girl was pale, but Harry could see that, despite her comprehensible horror when confronted with the murder scene, she was itching to get her hands on whoever had dared commit murder on the Hogwarts Express. Harry wanted to get to the bottom of what had happened too, so he nodded and they headed towards the compartment where the dead man lay.

Before they had time to reach it, however, the train made such a brusque movement that Ginny, who was standing right in front of Harry, got thrown against the wall, whimpering when her arm made contact with it. In less than a second, Harry was next to her, checking it concernedly. "Are you all right? Did you get hurt?"

Ginny gave him a fierce look that shut him up at once. "I'm fine. I just hit the wall with the bruised part of my arm, that's all." She showed him the bruise. Harry frowned.

"Did you get that with Romilda?"

"Yeah, she threw me to the floor. Why?" Ginny asked in a disgruntled tone.

"Honestly, you needn't fight over me, Gin. I'd never be with Romilda, not while I can maintain my sanity, at least. And if I ever do lose it, you've got my permission to put me out of my misery before such a terrible fate befalls me."

Ginny stared at him intensely, as if trying to judge just how serious he was being in telling her Romilda did not interest him in any way. Harry knew he was a pretty bad liar, and hoped she couldn't detect falsity in his words.

"Anyway, how did she plan to approach me? We're not even _friends_!" Harry smirked, and immediately kicked himself mentally over how blasé he had sounded. Ginny's eyes, on the other hand, had just widened, as if she had remembered something very important.

"Harry… I forgot! She showed us the cloak in the compartment, your Invisibility Cloak!"

Harry's smirk disappeared almost instantly. "Ginny, how many people saw that cloak?"

Ginny's mouth fell open in shock. "Oh, my! Everyone in the compartment, I think! Romilda, obviously, me, Mariah, Michael and Zabini… Natalie saw it too, but she's already cleared. Whatever they did to him, curse or not, requires either power or force, and she possesses none." Harry stared at her for a moment, his forehead furrowing, then filed the matter away in his memory and entered the compartment.

He fully took in the scene for the first time. The man was sprawled on the floor, near the window, his face and chest to the floor. The enormous amount of blood came from both the smack he had taken to the head caused by the windowsill, probably when he had fallen, and a massive, hideous wound he sustained on his back. The wound on his back seemed to have been caused by an attack from upwards, but he couldn't be sure. He also recognised the wounds that disfigured the man's face as a product of multiple _Diffindo_ curses.

He knelt down next to the body. The sight and smell of blood was as sickening as ever, but he managed to spot something he hadn't before: the man had something in his hand. Mustering all his presence of spirit, Harry took the corpse's hand in his and gently pulled some dark blue hairs out of it.

He turned to Ginny, who was standing behind him. "Well, he was attacked from behind, in the back. I daresay whoever did this is not short."

Ginny made a strange noise with her mouth. "Well, I'm off the list, then! Where're you going?" she inquired, for Harry had made it past her and was already at the door.

"I'm going to claim what's mine," he offered, and sprinted towards his intended compartment.

XoX

"Will you or will you not give it to me?"

Harry was becoming increasingly more impatient, for Romilda hadn't shown any signs of wanting to give him his Cloak. He finally reached his boiling point. Pointing his wand at her, he asked for it once again. Romilda hesitantly went over to her trunk and opened it.

The cloak was gone, just like he had expected. Nevertheless, this story didn't end here.

"Well, who picked it up, then?" At the sight of the baffled people in the compartment, he felt a sudden urge to growl, but managed to restrain himself from doing it. "Open your trunks, please, all of you. I'm not leaving without my cloak."

Reluctantly, everyone obeyed, after waiting for Mariah to get back from the loo. The result did not surprise Harry.

His cloak was in none other than Mariah Montgomery's trunk.

**A/N:** First of all, HAPPY NEW YEAR, everyone!

Thanks once again to Raisinous Fiendling for beta-ing this without losing her patience.

I hope you guys liked this chapter. Please review it, all right? ;)


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: **As I'm not a blonde, rich, talented Englishwoman, I'm afraid this isn't mine. Harry Potter ™ and all related characters belong to JK Rowling. I just borrowed them for a bit of fun.

**A BLOODY RIDDLE: THE REWRITE**

**Chapter ****Four**

"Ginny, I swear I didn't do anything!" Mariah pleaded for the umpteenth time, but the girl in front of her felt as if she could murder her on the spot, not believing a single word Montgomery said. How could she plead innocence when the evidence they had pointed clearly to her?

"Then how did the Cloak get in there? You did not leave the compartment until now, did you?"

"She did."

Ginny turned to stare at Harry, who was walking back from the toilet. "How can you possibly know that?"

Harry shrugged. "I saw her in the corridor when I arrived, remember? She was standing between you and Vane. Ginny, may I have a word with you, please? In private?" he added, pointing to the toilet the witch had been occupying previously.

The girl nodded. "Excuse us, Mariah." They entered the toilet and closed the door.

"_Muffliato!_" Harry pronounced, pointing carefully through the ancient keyhole to the part of the train external to the toilet. He then faced Ginny. "First of all, Mariah didn't do it. Or at least, she's not a very probable candidate."

Ginny was suprised at his certainty. "How can you be so sure? I mean, we found some hairs of hers in the guy's hand after all..." she trailed off, uncertain of what was going on.

Harry shook his head. "Mariah's way too short for that guy, she could not have attacked him that way. Besides, I think he'd not have been able to grab her hair. We're a bit too cramped in here, but we can try to demonstrate that. He looked around at the tiny cubicle. "Here," he said, turning the magical wastebin on its side, "I'll stand on this, so the difference between our heights will be more or less the same as theirs." With her help, he stepped on the bin, facing away from her. "Now attack me."

"Easier said than done," Ginny huffed, pressing herself against his back in an attempt to simulate an attack. "It's a bit awkward like this, you're way up there, even though the bin's thin!"

"Can you take a step back from me and stand there? That's not how he was attacked."

Ginny did so. Even with Harry standing on the bin as far away from her as possible, they were still too close. "I'll press myself against the door," she said, and stood with her back completely against the door. "We're still fairly close, Harry!"

The boy looked at her over his shoulder. "That'll have to do. Can you put a hand or an arm around my neck and another pointing at my back now? Use your wand if you want to." She did so, rather awkwardly due to their height difference. Harry flailed both arms in an attempt to grab her hair, but it proved impossible. Ginny's eye level barely reached his shoulderblades, and he simply could not reach that far down. Harry looked satisfied when he stepped down from the bin, put it in its place and faced Ginny, still pressed against the door to allow for his movement.

"See? Unless the guy was made of rubber, he'd never have been able to grab her hair. Mariah's out."

"Couldn't we have done this outside, with space?" she protested.

"We could, if I didn't have something else to show you. Take a look at this, Ginny," he said, extracting something from his pocket.

Ginny was baffled. "What is it?"

Harry looked somber. "I just found this note in the toilet bowl. Read it." He extended a piece of parchment to her, obviously repaired, but still legible.

_Winchester, 7__th__ June_

_My dear son,_

_Our Lord's spy forces have notified me of an outrageous occurrence. It seems like a certain Mr. Marius Austin has decided to show his true allegiances. As it turns out, he was spying for the Order of the Phoenix, giving them inside information on our plans._

_As you've so wisely learned, there is no place in this world for traitors of any sort. All of them must be banished, and the race purified. As a recent inductee, this will be your first task to show your value to our Master._

_According to Snape, Austin is going to board the Hogwarts Express in order to get to London unsuspected. It will be your mission to find and kill him, leaving no trace behind whatsoever. It would be advisable for you to leave his Mark showing; with a stroke of luck, those foolish things that call themselves Aurors will end up chucking a Light supporter in jail._

_I enclose the family dagger within this letter. It can be retrieved with the usual incantation. Its properties to a first-time killer are immeasurable, so I must insist you use it. Don't forget to destroy this letter as soon as you have finished reading it._

_Your father,_

_Giles Zabini_

Ginny was gob-smacked for a moment. "Well, this is what _I_ call a stroke of luck…" She turned to Harry. "Let's send this to Tonks straight away! She'll know what to do!"

Harry, however, bit into his lower lip and didn't answer, averting his eyes from her. Ginny looked at him incredulously.

"Harry! We've got proof that the murderer is Zabini, what are you waiting for?"

Harry still looked unsettled when he replied. "This doesn't make sense."

"What?!"

"This doesn't make sense, Ginny! Zabini wouldn't be this careless with such highly incriminating evidence, he just wouldn't. An _Incendio_ would have done the trick, why chuck it in a toilet and risk being caught? For that matter, why would he bring this into the train at all? This note was written two days ago, and the writer stated explicitly that it was to be destroyed immediately after being read. So what is it doing, two days later, waiting to be found near the crime scene? Surely Zabini isn't that imbecilic!"

"Well, how do you explain this then? It's a note, Harry, written by his father and telling him to kill a guy that has conveniently appeared dead here, inside a compartment no one could predict he would occupy! Face it, Zabini forgot about being cunning for once. We've found Marius Austin's murderer."

Harry shook his head vehemently. "Honestly, I don't think so. It's a huge mistake to make. Slytherins never compromise their clan, the prestige of their name, their position in society. There's just too much at stake here. Zabini didn't dispose of this message, someone else did."

Ginny felt extremely sceptical. "Someone who wanted to cover for him? But then there are two people in on this! It can't be, Harry, someone would've noticed."

Harry made a sound of impatience, lifting his hands to his head as he shook it and pulling on his hair. "No, Ginny, not to cover for him, to _incriminate_ him!"

Ginny's eyes widened in disbelief. "Now I know you're talking nonsense. No one with access to this would want to incriminate Zabini, Harry. Snakes take care of their own. Parkinson and Goyle are the only Slytherins in this carriage, and they and Blaise Zabini certainly seem very cosy!"

Harry sighed and slid down the wall until he was sitting down on the toilet floor, his legs propped up against the other side of the cubicle in an uncomfortable position. "Ginny, let's think about this, all right? Have you ever read a letter written by Giles Zabini?"

The girl frowned. "Apart from this one, no. Why?"

He looked up at her. "Then why are you so sure it was written by him?"

Ginny looked at him doubtfully. "You mean someone else killed Austin, then wrote this and planted it in the toilet for us to find? Why would anyone do something like that? For that matter, how could they know the victim's name or that he would be on the train?"

Harry shrugged nonchalantly. "They didn't?"

She rolled her eyes before staring down at him. "Harry, I'm serious here!"

"Me too!" he huffed from the floor. "Don't you think the note sounds suspicious? I mean, it's way too explicit, for one. Surely, if Zabini's father really wanted Marius Austin dead, he would have been a bit more subtle in case the letter was intercepted?"

"Well, yeah, but that doesn't mean the letter's fake, just that Zabini's father is as dumb as he is!" Ginny pleaded irrationally, punching the wall of the toilet for effect and looking exasperatedly at Harry, who gave her a rather cynical look and shook his head.

"Look, I know Slytherin isn't made of fluffy white rabbits, but you're being extreme about this, Ginny. This letter is way too verbose for something urgent and discreet, and the only other person with connections to the Death Eatlers it mentions is Snape, of all people, and everyone now knows he was a spy for the Dark till he... anyway, the point is, whoever wrote this didn't know what they were doing, did they? It sounds a lot like an attempt to make Zabini seem guilty. I'd bet anything Zabini didn't know Marius was on the train, that he didn't even know the man was a traitor!"

Ginny looked triumphant. "There you have it, Harry! Zabini kept the letter and planted it in the toilet in case the body was found before the journey ended! Or he may even have forged it himself!"

"Who would forge evidence that pointed, even remotely, towards themselves?" Harry scoffed. "Surely he wouldn't take the risk. No, this was someone else. Do you know of someone that has something against the Zabinis?"

Ginny thought for a moment and sat on the toilet seat after pulling the lid down. "You sure?"

"Ginny, I'm almost sure this is someone with a grudge and not only against the son, but the father too. Please think, is there someone who could wish them harm, I don't know, some rival clan, anyone?"

Ginny pressed her lips close together. "Well, there might be someone, yes..."

Harry narrowed his eyes. "I sense a 'but' coming..."

"We've already eliminated her, that's what. Giles Zabini was suspected of collaborating with Greyback on three crimes, including the Death Eater raid on the Montgomery family home, remember? He was acquitted by the Wizengamot."

Harry made a face that betrayed his surprise. "What? How come I never heard anything about that?"

That surprised Ginny. "Professor Dumbledore didn't tell you? Or the Order? That's weird... all right, never mind that now," she hurried to add, seeing how Harry's expression had fallen considerably at the mention of the headmaster. "The Ministry hushed it all up, with the Zabini name being as influential as it is and all that. Couldn't have such a scandal connected to that family, now could we? I mean, no one has proof of what happened Mrs. Zabini's previous husbands, even though we all have a pretty damn good idea. But this case would possibly be more outrageous than all those put together – there would be proof the family was directly connected to a vicious murder aboard a train full of school children. People would want to have both theirs and the Aurors' heads for endangering their precious offspring!"

Harry shook his head incredulously, apparently figuring the rest out for himself without further prompt from her. "Of course not. Especially when Greyback's name was also connected to those crimes. It would drag their name through the mud in some circles even if it weren't true – they might be influential, but there are much bigger bullies in the playground, aren't there? It's amazing, you know - whenever I think these guys couldn't get any more corrupt, they always manage to find a way to prove me wrong."

Ginny agreed wholeheartedly, but she knew she did not need to put it into words. Harry certainly wouldn't expect any less of her.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Harry asked suddenly.

"That depends on what you're thinking," she replied, confused.

"Mariah Montgomery. She could have murdered Austin in an attempt to incriminate Zabini!"

Ginny twisted her nose in disagreement. "Absolutely not! We've proved he couldn't have grabbed her hair himself, and she wouldn't have planted her own hairs in his hand. You said it yourself, Harry, no one would choose to incriminate themselves, how foolish would that be?"

Harry bit his lip. "OK, so let's get some things straight. First of all, the person we're looking for is definitely in this carriage. They have inside information from the Ministry, probably from a family member or close friend, since they were trusted with confidential information about the Zabinis. They are probably at OWL level at the very least, though I'd bet they are in their sixth or seventh year. They had to be among the first ones to be let into the carriage, otherwise the others would have noticed them passing by, since the entrance is at the back of the carriage. And they have something against the Zabini family. Possibly the Montgomery family too, since Mariah's hair was planted in Marius Austin's hand. Essentially, we're looking for someone who incriminated Mariah and, knowing of the enmity between the Montgomery family and the Zabinis, faked her incrimination of Blaise. Oh, and whoever it is isn't a dwarf. So..." He finally paused, looking at his companion. "Where does that lead us?"

Harry had just described a person, though Ginny had absolutely no clue who it might be. They had to find out who were the people connected to the Ministry first. "Hey, Harry, where did you put the other copy of the list we sent Tonks?"

The boy rummaged in his pockets for a moment before producing a very crumpled piece of parchment. "Found it!" he exclaimed before handing it over to her.

Ginny's annoyance must have shown on her face, judging from Harry's blush. "Well... it's still legible, isn't it?" he offered coyly.

Ginny bit her lip and didn't answer, focusing instead on the list she was holding. "People with connections to the Ministry..." she muttered. "Are you going to help or what?" she snapped at him, spying the guilty grin that spread across his face from the corner of her eye.

XoX

Harry would not admit it even to himself, but for a moment there, when Ginny had proved so knowledgeable about the Montgomery case, he had suspected there was something she was not telling him about the murder. However, those worries were quickly dispelled when he realised Ginny had been one of the last to come into the train, which meant that, had she been the murderer, she would have run a higher risk of being seen than if she had been one of the first to enter.

That particular thought filled him with relief. He didn't know what he would have done if he had trusted Ginny just to find out she was the one he was looking for in the first place.

Sighing, he focused on the task at hand. The trouble was, he knew next to nothing about half the people on that list, so he would be hard-pressed to find out whether or not they had connections to the Ministry.

"I'm sure about the Batesons, their father works in the Accidental Magic Reversal Squad, but the others..." Ginny shrugged.

Harry pointed out another name. "Marietta Edgecombe. Her mother is part of the Department of Magical Transportation, remember?" he stated bitterly.

"That bitch!" Ginny spat, hugging her knees to her chest so her feet were also resting on the lid.

"I don't know about anyone else," said Harry, dismayed.

"Yeah, me neither," Ginny said with a puzzled look on her face.

Harry huffed exasperatedly. "Well, there must be someone else. None of these people had a motive to kill Marius Austin. Perhaps they told someone else, who in turn told someone else – you know how gossip spreads fast in Hogwarts." He scowled.

Ginny bit her lower lip. "But that leaves us with nothing again!"

Harry buried his hands in the untamable mane that was his hair, resting his elbows on his knees. "We must focus on what we know. There's no escape."

His companion looked at him from her seat. "I thought we were doing that."

The boy shook his head. "Those were suppositions, not facts." He fell silent for a moment, trying to remember the crime scene. Something popped into his mind. "Gin, did you see anything on the seats? Had they been sat on, for example?"

Ginny shook her head. "No, nothing. I noticed that while you were inspecting the body. There's blood on them, sure, but nothing else had touched them, that much was clear."

"Not even feet?"

"Not even feet." She reassured him. "If the killer had stood on them, they would have left a mark and then tried to flatten the whole thing, wouldn't they? And you know how old these seats are, it would have been impossible to do that and leave everything exactly as it was. I wonder who sets those things right every year…"

Harry made a face. "Forget it, Ginny. Whoever it was did not stand on the seats and then flatten them – they would have spread the blood on the seats, even if they had done it with magic. There was just too much of it, and it was too fresh."

Ginny shot him an inquisitive look. "Well, nothing new there, right?"

Harry bit the inside of his cheek and disentangled his hands from his hair. "It's just… Marius Austin wasn't a tall man – even I'm taller than him!"

"Barely," Ginny muttered, catching the toilet paper roll he threw at her in defence of his manly honour.

"As I was saying," he proceeded, ignoring Ginny's giggles, "whoever killed him has to be taller than I am, right? Otherwise the wound would be more horizontal, not at a downwards angle!"

Ginny consulted the list. "Well, that pretty much leaves the boys, I'm afraid. Zabini, Justin, McLaggen and Dean." She flashed him a triumphant look. "See? Zabini's name keeps popping up!"

Harry frowned. "Give me that, will you?" Ginny handed him the list. "You forgot a few names, Ginny. Michael Corner, Leanne, Edgecombe, Goyle...?"

Ginny waved her hand dismissively. "You, Michael, Edgecombe and Leanne are almost the same height, give or take a couple centimetres. There wouldn't have been that big a difference to justify the angle of the stab wound."

Harry's eyebrows shot up. "Michael's much taller than me!"

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Not anymore, I'm afraid. You had a bit of a growth spurt this year. Trust me, I know. I spent seventy-five percent of my time with my eyes glued on you."

For a moment, Harry thought about teasing her and asking about the other twenty-five percent, but he managed to restrain himself. The way things were going, his resolution to stay away from Ginny romantically wouldn't last the day. "All right, so I'll take your word for it. But what about Goyle? He's tall, bulky, and ruthless."

Ginny shook her head again. "Honestly Harry, whoever did this had enough sense to cover their tracks. Goyle can't tell his mouth from his arse, remember?"

Harry was forced to concede defeat, albeit grudgingly. "So we've got Dean, Justin, McLaggen and Zabini. Now what? It could have been any of them."

Ginny looked stunned. "You can't possibly think either Dean or Justin had anything to do with this, Harry! We know them, they'd never kill anyone!"

Harry looked up at her. "Wouldn't they if they thought there was a Death Eater on the train, ready to strike? I don't know, Ginny. I just know one thing: it wasn't McLaggen. The guy is all talk, he'd never have the nerve to kill anyone in spite of all that muscle. And I still think Zabini, for all his faults, is innocent."

Ginny made an irritated clicking noise with her tongue and didn't respond.

"Gin, that note was written after my conversation with the witch, of that I'm sure. We'd both been in here before, we'd both flushed the toilet. There was nothing there back then. Then I talked to the witch, and forgot to put up silencing charms. Someone must have heard us, hence the mention of Marius Austin's name in the letter Zabini's father supposedly wrote him. So my best guess is that the piece of parchment was planted in this toilet while we were inside that compartment. We'll have to ask around to know who left their compartments recently. Unless you saw anyone in the corridor...?"

Ginny looked pensive. "No, I didn't see anyone... AH!"

The train had lurched violently once again, sending Harry sidewards against the base of the toilet and causing him to almost hit his head. Ginny wasn't so lucky. Her back collided with the water tank and her head bent backwards at a dangerous angle, hitting the back wall of the stall.

Harry's furious swearing was drowned by a scream coming from one of the compartments outside. Instinctively, he shot to his feet as quickly as he could, a task made difficult because of Ginny's legs, and hurried to open the door. There was a big commotion, apparently originating in the back left compartment. Harry turned to Ginny, who was massaging her head and neck and seemingly trying hard not to cry. "Will you be all right?"

"Yeah, yeah, go on, I'll be right behind you..."

Sending her one last concerned look, Harry darted out of the stall.

XoX

"WHAT...?!"

"It's there!" cried little Anne Clearwater, hugging her legs against her chest, feet on the seat, and pointing shakily to the space under the row of seats opposite her. Harry crouched low and peered under the seat she had pointed at. What he saw was another piece of the puzzle. Only that piece did not seem to fit.

Under the seat was a bloodied silver letter opener.

"Has anyone got a clean handkerchief...?" he asked, remembering his own was already stained with blood. He didn't want to risk mixing samples, especially when he was not sure they had even come from the same donor.

McLaggen handed him a dark blue handkerchief with a _C_ embroidered in what looked like gold. He looked more smug than ever, though only Merlin knew why.

"Do any of you recognise this?" Harry asked the students surrounding him, who all shook their heads. Looking at them, Harry had to admit that none of them were the type of person who carried a letter opener with them at all times, and certainly not one as fine and delicately ornated as that one. It seemed a very feminine thing to possess, but there were certainly no girls tall enough to fit with what they knew of the murderer.

"Are you sure? Has it been stolen from one of you, perhaps? You can tell me, I'm not going to jump to conclusions."

Once again, the answer all of them gave was negative and, looking at their faces, Harry couldn't tell if any of them was lying; they all seemed sincere, each in their own way.

"All right. And did any of you leave this compartment? I mean, after the body was discovered but before the letter opener got in the compartment?" Another negative answer from all of them.

"Did you see anyone leave one of the other compartments?"

The two Bateson children, Katie's friend Leanne and her younger brother Liam, looked pensive for just a moment before they both shook their heads almost simultaneously. Cormac McLaggen was evidently racking his brains in an attempt to give Harry something useful, just so that he would be effectively taking part in thet murder investigation, but Harry could tell he had nothing to give him. Anne was still looking at the blood-covered object in Harry's hand, as if she feared it would come alive and attack her. Justin Finch-Fletchley just shook his head, an apologetic look on his face. Meanwhile, Ginny entered the compartment silently, still rubbing her head.

"There was a girl... younger than us, don't know her name," said Morag MacDougal, a Ravenclaw fifth-year, suddenly. Harry remembered that they had come to Hogwarts in the same year, but Morag, a Muggle-born, had been withdrawn a month later by his parents due to a grave illness. He had repeated his first year at the request of his parents, since the teachers had offered to give him some extra lessons so he wouldn't fall behind. Morag didn't seem very upset back then, though, so everyone had eventually stopped talking about him and accepted his situation. "I think she is in the same compartment as my cousin Natalie," he offered.

Harry turned to Ginny. "Ginny, do you have the map with you?"

The girl gave him a disgruntled look. "Yeah, because I usually just leave everything lying around, don't I? Anyway, that's my compartment. What did she look like, Morag?"

The boy frowned. "Erm... shiny black hair, I think. Makeup. About this tall." And he placed his hand in line with his shoulder.

Ginny frowned. "Wait, that's Romilda! Are you sure?" she asked Morag.

"Well," he answered, "I'm not sure about the makeup. But the rest, yeah, I'm pretty sure."

"But they're in the compartment directly in front of the victim's, how did you see her?" Harry asked.

Morag pointed calmly to one of the two seats next to the door. "That's my seat. You may sit, if you wish. I like corners, they allow me to rest my head on the wall." Harry sat and assumed the position. From there, Morag could indeed see not only the compartment he had said the girl had exited but also a fair bit of the corridor. He looked at the other occupants of the compartment inquisitively. All of them nodded their heads, confirming the story.

Harry looked at Ginny, confused. That didn't make sense at all. Thanking Morag and the others, they exited the compartment and slid the door completely shut in order to calm Anne, who was terrified another bloodied object would come through any opening they left.

Once in the corridor, Harry looked at Ginny, who just nodded. Together, they strode to her compartment and slid the door open. It became immediately apparent that a Silencing charm had just been dispelled. Michael Corner and Romilda Vane were in the middle of a shouting match, apparently over Ginny, and were throwing hot wand sparks at each other. Zabini sat comfortably in his place, seemingly highly amused by the argument, while a frightened Natalie had climbed into Mariah Montgomery's lap, who in turn had erected a shield charm around them and was awkwardly trying to soothe her.

Ginny pushed past Harry with a yell. "That's ENOUGH!" Corner and Vane fell silent as if someone had simultaneously slapped them in the face. "Michael, thanks, but I know how to defend myself. Vane, honey, the only whore here is you. Harry," the boy looked at her in alarm, "do the honours."

Ignoring Zabini's impression of a salivating dog, Harry took a step to join Ginny. "Guys, did any of you leave this compartment after I was here?" They all shook their heads at once, but then everyone turned to stare at Romilda, who looked like a deer caught in the headlight.

"So...?" Harry verbally nudged her.

"Yeah, I went to the toilet, Harry. You know... to reapply my makeup." Romilda shot Ginny a dirty look.

Harry narrowed his eyes. "Really? Come here, please." Romilda's expression turned extremely smug, and she walked the few steps that separated them with a ridiculous sway to her hips that sent Zabini into hysterics, making her scowl at him before she stopped in front of Harry, placing her hands on the front of his shirt. "Yes?" she asked, turning her head to him with a wide grin.

Harry pushed her hands away as gently as he could and took Giles Zabini's supposed letter, placing it in front of her eyes. "So you want me to believe that you've never seen this letter in your life?" he asked.

Roimilda didn't answer immediately, but a telltale redness spread through her cheeks as she faced the parchment. Finally seeming to find her voice, she said. "Of course I've never seen it, do you think I know what Death Eaters get up to?! I'm very much on your side, Harry!" she said, trying not to sound shrill, and failing.

"Don't make things harder on yourself, Romilda. I know you wrote this," Harry stated, ignoring Ginny and Blaise Zabini's expressions of surprise and ill-disguised curiosity, respectively.

Before his eyes, Romilda's posture betrayed defeat. "Yes, I did. But Harry, I was only trying to help!"

Harry was sure his incredulity must be evident in his face. "_Help?_ Romilda, you forged evidence against another person! How do you think _that_ helps?!"

"But can't you see, Harry? He's the only one who could possibly have done it!" Romilda's eyes were practically bulging out of their sockets as she pointed a resolute finger in Zabini's direction. Zabini's eyebrows shot up past his hairline.

"Is that a compliment, Vane?" he asked caustically.

Romilda's flush turned, if possible, even less pretty. "Well, there are only three Slytherins in this carriage. Goyle's got no brains, Parkinson is only talented in bed, so that leaves you, doesn't it?"

"Why does it have to be a Slytherin, Vane?" retorted Zabini with a scowl. "And while I'll agree that Goyle has yet to learn to string two syllables together and Pansy finds it quite difficult to restrain herself, I should point out that not only intelligent people are killers. In fact, some of them are quite stupid, which I guess leaves _you_ in quite an uncomfortable position, doesn't it, Vane?"

"People," admonished Harry, "do we need to send you back to kindergarten?" And turning to Romilda, "I hope you realise the Aurors will have to talk to you. What you did was quite grave, I hope you're aware of that." He then stepped back to face the rest of them, leaving a teary-eyed Romilda Vane to sink back into her seat, looking as if Christmas had been cancelled.

"Now that we cleared that up... who put my Invisibility Cloak inside Mariah's trunk?" Harry asked. Silence fell in the compartment, save for Romilda's now full-blown sobs and Mariah's whispers of comfort to the wide-eyed second-year on her lap. As Harry watched, Natalie slid back to her original seat besides Mariah, looking around the compartment to see if someone confessed to moving the Cloak from Romilda's trunk.

Harry sighed. "Look, guys, if you don't tell me, I'll tell the Aurors and they'll get it out of you anyway. So what's it going to be, me or Veritaserum?"

Again, silence. Harry looked at their faces one by one. Natalie had an air of innocent curiosity about her, and there was nothing she could gain by framing Mariah. Mariah certainly wouldn't be so stupid as to try and frame herself, specially given the hairs someone had placed in the hand of the victim. No, she wouldn't run that risk. So who? It hadn't been Corner – he, too, was looking around curiously, not a trace of guilt in his face, and Harry knew him well enough to know he was not a good actor. Although, he thought jealously, to be fair, most of that knowledge stemmed from what Ginny had told him. Well, she would know, wouldn't she?

Harry woke up from his semi-reverie to feel Ginny discreetly elbowing him. Looking at her inquisitively, he saw her looking expressively in Zabini's direction. Glancing at him, Harry noticed his defiant expression, the unwavering glance focused only on him, the little cynical half-smile on his lips.

"Clan rivalries, Zabini? I thought you wouldn't want your name involved in such a petty business. You know, the Aurors are aware I'm trying to figure this whole thing out in here. I'm sure they won't let anyone out of this carriage without interrogating them first, even if they have to use Veritaserum." Harry's voice lowered more and more with each word, until it was barely more than a whisper. "Make no mistake, I know it was you who planted the evidence against Mariah. I'll tell the Aurors and you'll have to confess to it anyway. Now, what do you think, Zabini?"

"I think you set way too much store by your own thoughts, Potter." Zabini sneered. "Be careful, that inflated ego will be the death of you one of these days."

Although he was boiling with anger inside, Harry tried to master his features to show a cold expression. "We'll see, won't we?" he retorted with fake sweetness. Turning back to face the others, he then asked, "Did any of you see anyone come in that compartment, by the way?"

Romilda immediately nodded her head. "Him!" And she again pointed at Zabini, who scoffed.

"And when was that, crybaby Vane?" he spat.

The venomous look Romilda shot Ginny spoke for itself, so Harry looked intently at Zabini.

"Well, the hairs didn't get there by themselves, did they?" he said maliciously, but it was Harry who he was staring at, not Romilda. Harry suddenly knew what the Slytherin was doing: he was admitting to a crime for fear of being accused of a much more serious one. Murder. One Harry was increasingly more convinced he had not committed.

"Anyone else?" Romilda looked scandalised at being so readily dismissed while the others all shook their heads.

From his side, Ginny spoke for the first time since she had ended Corner and Vane's argument. "Which one of you entered the train first?" she asked, placing a calming hand on Harry's arm.

They all looked at each other, probably trying to remember who had and hadn't been there when they had arrived. Except for one.

"I was the first one to enter this compartment," Michael Corner said promptly.

Ginny looked directly at him, smiling, and for a moment Harry just wanted to forget everything about their investigation and punch the guy in the mouth. "Did you see anyone in the train back then?" she asked him.

Michael remained silent for a moment. "Well... there was Marietta. She was coming from the toilet when I was about to enter the compartment. Didn't notice me, I think. Pretty agitated, too."

Harry and Ginny looked at each other, perplexed. "And did you notice something out of place about her? Anything at all?" Harry enquired.

Michael scratched the back of his head and Harry couldn't help but wonder savagely if he had washed it in the last year – surely those stupid spiky effects couldn't be caused only by hair gel? "Uhm... there was something, yeah. She was barefoot." He said, to their bemusement. "Her shoes were in her hand, couldn't get a good view of them. Seemed high-heeled, though."

Harry's eyes widened in surprise. If those high heels truly existed, they could change everything. He exchanged an excited look with Ginny and, without even thanking anyone, he exited the compartment, the redhead hot on his heels.

**A/N:** Sorry for the delay in getting this chapter out. As always, thanks to RF. Please don't forget to review.


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: **As I'm not a blonde, rich, talented Englishwoman, I'm afraid this isn't mine. Harry Potter ™ and all related characters belong to JK Rowling. I just borrowed them for a bit of fun.

**A BLOODY RIDDLE: THE REWRITE**

**Chapter ****Five**

Ginny said a quick "thank you" to Michael as she left the compartment, eyes intent on the raven-haired boy walking fast in front of her. Her head was reeling. Could it be that Marietta Edgecombe was the killer they were looking for?

After briefly searching his pockets, most likely to make sure he had his wand and all the evidence they posessed with him, Harry slid open the door to the back right compartment. He seemed satisfied when he faced the occupants of the compartment, so Ginny assumed everything was exactly where it was supposed to be.

"Hello, guys. Which one of you was the first to enter this compartment?" he asked, ignoring Pansy Parkinson's imitation of his words in a terribly annoying baby voice that reminded Ginny of Bellatrix Lestrange.

Cho Chang smiled brightly at him. "I was."

Harry nodded at her. "Could you please tell me the order in which each one of you came in, Cho?"

"Yes, of course. First me, obviously, then Lavender, Marietta, Dean, Pansy and Gregory."

"Who gave you permission to call me by my given name, scumbag? It's Miss Parkinson to you!" Pansy spat from her seat beside the window. To her credit, Cho acted as if she hadn't heard her. The rest of them didn't contest what Cho had said, so Ginny assumed what she had said was true.

Harry looked at them shrewdly. "But that wasn't the order in which you came into the train, was it?"

"Marietta was the first to be called, but when I came in here she was coming back from the toilets. Couldn't hold it in, heh, Mary?" Lavender said in one breath, looking extremely pleased with herself.

Harry nodded and took McLaggen's dark blue handkerchief out of his pocket, wrapped around, Ginny knew, the murder weapon.

"Oooo, everyone step aside, big bad Potty's going to bring us to justice! Will you arrest us with your magical handcuffs, Potty, you naughty boy? Oh, I forgot – you probably have none, poor dear!" Pansy cackled. Ginny was incredulous. Only Pansy could stoop so low as to make sexual innuendo in such a delicate situation. She opened her mouth to tell the Slytherin to shut up, but Harry gently restrained her.

"Let the bitch bark, Ginny," he said calmly, causing her and the rest of the non-Slytherin occupants of the compartment to burst into fits of giggles. However, even through her mirth, Ginny could tell that at least one of them was extremely uncomfortable. Marietta Edgecombe had her hand politely placed in front of her mouth as if to restrain her laughter, but her eyes were darting from side to side as if seeking an escape. Suddenly, Ginny didn't feel like laughing anymore.

"So," Harry said while everyone was still coming down from their fits of laughter, "does anyone here recognise this?" He held up the bloodied letter opener. Immediately, Cho let out a high-pitched shriek.

"Mary, isn't that your letter opener? The one your mum gave you last Christmas?" she asked, eyeing her friend with surprise. Marietta said nothing.

"Could you come outside with us for a moment, Marietta?" Harry asked gently, in a silky voice very much unlike his own. The older girl nodded and made to follow them out of the compartment. Ginny noticed she was still barefoot.

"And bring your shoes, please? The ones with the high heels you were using earlier today?" The girl said nothing, but fetched a bundle from underneath her seat before following them.

Once outside, Harry cast _Muffliato_ and turned to face Marietta. "Why did you take your shoes off, Marietta?"

The girl answered in an expressionless voice. "They were hurting my feet."

"Really? Let me see your feet," he demanded. Marietta scowled but lifted one foot at a time, letting Harry examine them. Neither foot presented signs of soreness, calluses or even redness. "They seem fine to me," he stated, staring at her with narrowed eyes. "Why did you not settle down in a compartment first and then go to the toilet? That bag underneath your seat and your trunk were with you, weren't they? Why didn't you leave them in a compartment first and then do what you had to do?"

Marietta looked at him with an expression close to disdain in her face. "I did, of course. I left them in my compartment," she said, gesturing towards the one they had just left. Harry eyed her curiously and then turned to face Ginny.

"Er... Marietta, give us a moment, will you?" he asked, his tone of voice making him seem embarassed, but his eyebrows shooting up furiously at Ginny, obviously trying to signal something was up and the other girl could not hear about it. However, when Marietta stepped away from them, dispelling the Muffliato charm around them, and stood leaning against the door to the next carriage, he only turned his back on her and faced Ginny full on with a pained expression. "I don't like this, she's way too calm," he hissed so low Ginny almost didn't catch it. "Wand."

"What?" she asked, befuddled.

"Lend me your wand, Gin. Please. Don't let her see, though," he said in the same tone as before.

Ginny, as inconspicously as she could, withdrew her wand from her pocket and deposited it in Harry's hand, which he had placed in front of his belly in an attempt to hide it from Marietta's view. Judging from the other girl's expression, either she had noticed nothing or she was a very good actress. "You realise you'd better think up an excuse for asking her for privacy, right?" she asked him quietly. "And why are we whispering when we could cast a Muffliato over ourselves?"

Harry shook his head almost imperceptibly. "No, it would make her even more suspicious if she realised we were obstructing the sound from her. Let her think we don't know much about this stuff or Merlin knows she might become nervous and do something unperdictable. I'm pretty sure it was her, Ginny. I just don't know if that's a good or a bad thing."

In front of him, Ginny clasped his hand. "Don't worry too much, that will not help us."

Harry nodded, grateful. "Say, will you check what she said about her stuff with the people in her compartment, just to avoid her becoming too suspicious? I don't like the idea of you being here without a wand. If she decides to attack, I have to be alone."

Ginny eyed him uneasily. "I'm not leaving you with a potential murderer. You'll not be serving as bait to get her to confess, Harry."

"I have two wands, she has only one and is not that great a witch. What's the worst that could happen?" Harry asked with a grimace Ginny supposed he must have thought was a radiant and confident smile. "Don't worry, I'm no defenceless eleven-year-old. Go talk to them, I'll call you if I need anything. Just don't stay too close to the door, please."

Ginny nodded and stepped toward the compartment in question, leaving Harry to walk in Marietta Edgecombe's direction. Ginny slid open the door, trying to conceal her unease as much as possible. "Cho, I need to ask you something."

The other girl nodded readily. "Of course, ask away."

"When you came in here, were Marietta's things already in this compartment?"

Cho stared at the redhead wide-eyed. "No, of course not. She carried them in later, when she joined us," she said as if it were obvious. Ginny silently thanked Merlin that Harry had split up with this girl. Not only would they have had no chance together, but Cho was also impossibly smug when it came to giving information, as if everything was crystal clear and the asker was just plain dumb.

Cho was saved from a rather angry retort by the sound of shouting outside, which made everyone jump to their feet and run out into the corridor.

On the other end, Harry and Marietta stood close together, wands pointed at each other's heads. Marietta was shouting like a woman possessed.

"YOU SHOULD BE THANKING ME! I GOT RID OF A FUCKING DEATH EATER, AN ENEMY, POTTER, AND THIS IS THE REWARD I GET, BEING ASKED TO HAND OVER MY WAND TO YOU? HELL WILL FREEZE OVER BEFORE I EVEN CONSIDER DOING THAT! YOU HAVE NO POWER OVER ME, CHOSEN ONE OR NOT, YOU HEAR ME? YOU HEAR ME?!" she yelled.

Harry just shook his head sadly. "The Aurors know what I'm doing, Marietta, and they will conduct a real investigation, you know that. You stand no chance!"

"Oh yeah? You mean like when I stood no chance when I told Umbridge about you and your Dumb Army? When you betrayed me and I got these... things on my face without ever being warned it would happen? I shouldn't have even done this for you, but I did, 'cause I somehow thought everything would be all right if I proved my allegiance to you, Potter! I'd hoped I'd come back to normal! Do you know what it's like to be stared at all the time, ridiculed, laughed at? THE HELL YOU DO!" Marietta had started to cry in her rage and her wand hand shook vehemently, but she did not lower it.

"As a matter of fact," Harry said calmly, "I do."

Harry's sentence managed to shock the seventh-year Ravenclaw so much that she stopped crying. "What...?"

"I know what it's like to be stared at, ridiculed and laughed at, Marietta, and I'm still here, still doing what feels right to me, as are many others," Harry continued, evidently trying to get her to see sense. "Now please tell me, did you at least do this in self-defence? How did you know he was a Death Eater?"

Marietta seemed taken aback by the question. "He fanned himself and the sleeve of his robe fell to his elbow. Said it was hot inside the compartment, asked me to open the window while he got some juice for us both. I saw him draw his wand, I actually thought he was going to kill me, but he shot an _Obliviate_ at me. It didn't work, and do you know what the guy did? He laughed and told me to sit down while he went to fetch something for us to drink. Can you imagine that? That guy was insane, and I told him so, and you know what he did? He fed me some bullshit story about being a spy for the Order of the Phoenix! Of course I killed him first chance I got, anyone would have done the same in my place!"

Ginny didn't want to believe what she was hearing. "You're the one who's insane here! Any normal person would have Stunned him and contacted the authorities! Did you not consider for a second that he might be telling the truth? Why would he even keep you alive, why not go on a killing spree if he was really a Death Eater?"

Marietta turned her head slightly to look at her and Ginny knew at that moment that the girl really_ was_ insane. "How would I know? Don't ask me to think like a criminal, Weasley!"

"You _are_ a criminal, Edgecombe. Who walks around with a fucking letter opener in their handbag, for Merlin's sake? In denial much?" drawled Zabini, seemingly highly amused by the whole situation. He was probably trying to unnerve her to the point of blowing herself and Harry up, Ginny realised. Bastard.

To her dismay, Zabini's apparent plan was partially successful, as Marietta got so unnerved that her wand shot sparks from its tip and struck Harry, making him press both hands to his face in pain. No longer under threat, given that Harry's wand was no longer pointed at her, Marietta wasted no time in snatching the boy's wand from his momentarily unresisting fingers and pointing it at her audience while keeping her own pointed at him.

"I hate you, Harry Potter. You are nothing but a farce! _Diffi_... ARGH!"

From behind her, the door to one of the toilet stalls had slid open, revealing Susan Austin, who slammed into the insane girl, making her lose her balance and fail to complete the charm. It was more than enough time for Harry to recompose himself, Ginny realised. As if in slow motion, she saw Marietta and the witch fall clumsily to the floor, while Harry shook Ginny's wand down his sleeve and into his hand and fired a _Stupefy_ at the duo, who fell limp, followed by the Disarming Charm.

"_Expelliarmus!_" he roared, retrieving both their wands as well as his own and separating them according to the owner. Meanwhile, Natalie, Anne, Liam, Leanne and Mariah levitated Susan into one of their compartments, seemingly agreeing that she actually needed the rest. The others, with the exception of the three Slytherin students and Romilda Vane, who was allegedly in need of Harry-applied CPR, hurried to move Marietta into another one of the compartments, Justin, Corner and McLaggen offering to watch her for the rest of the trip, which was almost at an end, anyway.

After assuring Edgecombe wouldn't run away with an _Incarcerous_, Harry walked over to Ginny, her wand in his extended hand.

"Thanks a lot, Gin. I had a feeling it would help. Sorry for... you know..." Harry scratched his head absently and looked at the floor as if ashamed, though Ginny knew he really wasn't. If there was something about Harry she liked, it was that he refused to be ashamed of what he thought was right.

"What, leaving me wandless in the presence of a murderer but saving everyone in the process? You're forgiven, Harry. I'm glad I could help. Just please don't pull a repeat performance anytime soon." She winked at him, feeling extremely glad he had managed to figure everything out without anyone else getting hurt.

Harry looked up at her with a small smile. "I'm not going to be able to stay away from you, am I?" he murmured quietly.

Ginny smiled. "Not a chance in the world, Mr. Potter." She said.

From behind them, Dean called out, breaking their intimate moment much too gleefully in her opinion. "Oy! You lovey-doveys there! Fancy playing Exploding Snap with us mortals?"

Ginny was stricken, having forgotten they were not alone. From beside her, Harry let out a deep, sincere bout of laughter, taking her hand and leading her towards the circle of students sitting on the corridor floor. She sighed contentedly.

All would be well.

**THE END**

**A/N: **This is it, everyone. Special thanks to RF, as always. Thanks a lot for the wonderful feedback, and feel welcome to tell me what you thought of this last chapter!


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